Earning Your Pension
Earning Credit
While you’re a participant, you’re earning both service credits and vesting credits.
- Service Credits
Current Service Credits. You earn one year of current service credit for each year contributions are made in your behalf. The total number of service credits you accumulate are used to determine the amount of your monthly benefit.
Past Service Pension Credits. You may be eligible to include service for the time you spent working before your employer joined the Plan. These are called “past service pension credits.”
Disability Credits. You may be eligible to earn disability credits if you are receiving long-term disability benefits from en employer-sponsored plan. Refer to your Summary Plan Description for more information.
Extra Service Credits. You may be eligible to earn extra service credits if credit for a given period would bring you up to 15 years of strive credit, 10 years of current service or 10 years of vesting credit.
- Vesting credits. Vesting credits affect your eligibility for a benefit, but not the amount of your benefit. In general, you earn a year of vesting credit for each calendar year that you receive a gross compensation of either at least $2,000 or equal to your lowest hourly rate during the calendar year multiplied by 700. When you become vested is determined by when you were or if you currently are a participant in the plan, as well as what province laws you are subject to, as outlined below.
| EMPLOYMENT PERIOD | VESTING RULE |
If you are subject to he pension laws of Provinces other than Saskatchewan, Quebec and Manitoba AND you terminate service after January 1, 1986 | You are vested after accumulating 3 years of current or vesting service; or 15 years of service credit with at least 1 year of current serve; or 24 months of continuous plan participation. |
If you are subject to the pension law of Saskatchewan AND you terminate service: On or after January 1, 1994 On or after July 1, 1981 but before January 1, 1994 | You are vested: After accumulating 24 months of continuous service; After 1 year of continuous service, when age plus years of continuous service equal at least 45. |
| If you are subject to the pension laws of Manitoba AND terminate on or after January 1, 1995 | You are vested after accumulating 24 months of continuous service or 24 months of plan participation, whichever occurs first. |
| Unless otherwise specified above, for terminations after January 1, 1976, but before January 1, 1986 | You are vested after accumulating 10 years of current or vesting service; or 15 years of service credit with at least 1 year of current service. |
| For terminations after October 1, 1964 but prior to January 1, 1976 | You are vested after accumulating 15 years of service credit. |
Your Summary Plan Description provides more information on how credit is earned, including vesting credit for military service and other factors that may affect you pension.
Breaks-in-Service
If you stop working for a period of time, you may incur a "break in service". Once you again meet the requirements of becoming a participant in the plan, your contributing employer is required to continue to make contributions to the Fund on your behalf.